


She fits right in

by Colourspaz



Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Adoption, Domestic Fluff, Kidfic, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-12 19:08:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29015625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Colourspaz/pseuds/Colourspaz
Summary: Sapnap and Karl adopt a daughteri bullshit the adoption process this is all fluff (and a lil hurt/comfort)
Relationships: Karl Jacobs/Sapnap
Comments: 25
Kudos: 191





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i don't know a lot about kids so this is probably unrealistic enjoy anyways

Sapnap shoves his suitcase into the corner of the room and collapses face forwards on the bed. Jet lag was a bitch, and Karl is giggling behind him, putting his suitcase next to Sapnap’s a little more gently, and then following him to the bed. 

An arm lands across Sapnap’s back, and a leg hooks around his. The weight feels nice, and Sapnap hums. 

“Hey, there, husband,” He murmurs, and Karl giggles. The word still feels weird in his mouth, despite it having been two weeks. Karl’s his husband. His _husband._

“Hi, nimrod,” Karl responds, pecking Sapnap on the cheek. 

Sapnap makes an affronted gasp and turns on his side, facing Karl. 

“I can’t _believe_ you would say something like that to your _darling husband._ In our own house!” Sapnap says, exaggeratedly. Karl just giggles, and when Sapnap reaches his hands out to tickle Karl’s sides, he giggles even louder and tries to squirm away. 

Sapnap props himself up and leans over Karl, tickling him harder, and Karl’s laugh only increases, infectious and making a grin spread across Sapnap’s face too. He giggles for Sapnap to stop and starts batting his hands away, so Sapnap eases off and straddles Karl instead, hands on his upper chest, and leaning down slightly for a kiss. 

Karl leans up to meet his lips, and Sapnap pushes into it, leaning further forwards so that Karl can relax against the pillows. He kisses his husband slowly, sensually, moving his hands up to the sides of Karl’s head and brushing his hair out of the way. 

“I-” a kiss. “Fucking-” Another kiss. “Love-” A third. “You-” A fourth. “So much.” A fifth, deeper and sweeter than the others. 

Karl’s face is bright red when Sapnap finally pulls away, and he hides his face in his hands as Sapnap starts laughing. 

“Sapnap,” He breathes. “Sapnap. _Nick._ You can’t just _do_ that.” 

“Mmm,” Sapnap says, leaning down and pressing feather-light kisses to Karl’s knuckles. “Yes I can. I love you,” He adds, for good measure. Karl makes a flustered, high-pitched noise, and shakes his head quickly. Sapnap just laughs and lays down on Karl’s chest, head on his collarbone. 

They lay there for a while. At some point, Karl’s hands move from his face to wrap around Sapnap, holding him close to his chest. It’s quiet in the house, and Karl is once again reminded of how this is their house, and it’s new, and it’s still really empty. 

“Hey, Sap?” He asks, voice ringing out in the quiet. He gets a hum in return. “D’you know what we’re going to do with that spare room yet?”

“No clue. Guest room, I guess, since we’re so close to your friends and stuff,” Sapnap mumbles. Karl tilts his head to the side. “Guess so.” 

~

They do make it into a guest room, plain teal sheets and a comforter from Ikea and a lamp that works most of the time. Nobody has used it yet- they don’t even step foot into it most of the time, and the door stays closed to keep the cats from going in. 

They’re visiting Chris and Tucker, one day, and Sapnap’s helping Chris make lunch while Karl plays with Tucker in the living room, and Sapnap keeps getting distracted by his husband. Chris notices, because of course he does, and after what must be the fourth time looking up, sappy smile poorly hidden on his face, Chris nudges Sapnap in the side. 

“I see you staring, don’t lie.” He says, and Sapnap blinks. 

“What?” 

Chris rolls his eyes. “You’ve looked over at Karl, like, a million times in the last ten minutes. I know he’s your husband and all, but damn, at least try and be sutble about it!” He teases, and Sapnap feels his ears flush red. 

“I- listen, man, I don’t…” Sapnap stutters out, and then trails off, unsure of how to defend himself. Chris just laughs. 

“Ah, it’s okay. I’m glad you two found each other, y’know? Karl deserves someone like you. I can see how happy he is,” Chris says, going back to making sandwiches. Sapnap just nods, slowly processing that information. Almost involuntarily, his eyes drift back over to Karl and Tucker. His husband is currently holding the boy on his lap and playing what looks like peek-a-boo, and every time Karl gets ‘spooked’ and over-exaggerates his expression, Sapnap’s heart melts into a little pile of mush. 

“Have you two talked about kids at all?” Chris asks, breaking the silence again. Sapnap swallows. 

“Uh. No.” 

“You think you might?” 

Sapnap’s still looking over at Karl. 

“Yeah. Yeah, I think so. We do have a spare room, anyways.” 

~

They do talk about it, one night, curled up on the couch. They’ve finished their movie and the TV is off, but neither of them particularly want to get up and move to the bed. Sapnap’s laying along the length of the couch and Karl is directly on top of him, head inbetween Sapnap’s neck and the back of the couch. Sapnap is staring at the ceiling, deep in thought, and threading his fingers through Karl’s hair. 

“Hey, babe?” Sapnap asks, pausing his hand. He gets a sleepy hum in return, and a whine for the hand to continue. Sapnap smiles to himself and complies, and then continues speaking. 

“You thought about having kids at all?” Sapnap blurts out. No better way to do it, right?

Karl goes silent and still before he lifts his head, propping himself up on an elbow to look at Sapnap. 

“Pretty sure neither of us can get pregnant, baby.” Karl says, one eyebrow raised. 

Sapnap bursts put laughing, nerves easing slightly, and he shakes his head. “You know what I meant, dumbass. I meant adoption, or something. A surrogate, if we wanted.” 

Karl’s gaze goes back to the ceiling, and he stares there for a long moment. Sapnap starts to get nervous again, and he’s beginning to think he shouldn’t even have asked in the first place. 

“Hey, stop fretting. It’s a valid question.” 

Sapnap hadn’t even realized Karl had looked back over at him, and he smiles sheepishly. Karl smiles softly in return, and lays fully back down on the bed, to be level with Sapnap. He grabs one of Sapnap’s hands in his, under the blankets, and thumbs along the soft skin of his hand. 

“I mean, you know I’ve always wanted to adopt,” Karl begins, losing eye contact again. “And I guess I get along well with Tucker, and whenever I need to babysit my cousins or whatever...so I guess so, yeah. Yeah, I think I do want a kid. Who knows, maybe kids, plural,” Karl says, looking back at Sapnap with the same soft smile on his face. Sapnap’s sure he’s blushing, and he leans forwards to kiss Karl. Karl kisses him back, and Sapnap can feel the metal of the ring on his finger when Karl cups his face.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> short chap but it felt best to separate the first two

Adoption, Sapnap is learning, is a very, very long process. They have to find an agency and look over their budget (and then look over it a second time.) They have many discussions about what age range they want, and what age would be the best to revolve around their careers, and long, information-filled talks about adoption with the social worker they’ve found. There’s interviews and reviews and house visits and it all takes _ages_ between each one. And somehow, they’ve kept it a secret from their friends. 

But in the end, after interviews and meetings and more than one late-night anxiety attack, they come home from a small diner out by the agency with their three year old daughter Ruby in tow. She’s sitting pretty calmly in the backseat, strapped into her carseat and looking out the window as they drive. 

The carseat they’d bought previously, one more plain-coloured and on the cheaper end. The plan was to take her shopping over the next few months, let her pick out her own seat, and clothes, and blanket, and toys, etc. They had all that for her, of course, but it was all very basic, not very personal. 

She’d recognized them when her and the social worker had walked into the diner, face lighting up slightly with a small giggle. She’d sat in Karl’s lap while Sapnap talked with the social worker and signed the last of the papers. 

(There was a lot of papers.)

But finally, _finally,_ they were able to take their little girl home with them. She had let Karl carry her out to the car while Sapnap carried her small bag of belongings from the orphanage. 

Right now, she’s still looking out the car window. Every time Karl’s turned around to check on her, she’s sitting in the same spot looking out the window, and his heart melts just a little bit at her pleased grin every single time. 

Mentally, he goes over a small checklist. Food? She’d eaten at the diner, they wouldn’t have to worry about that until dinnertime, unless she got hungry of course. She took her naps later in the afternoon, the social worker had told them, and she had gotten plenty of sleep the night before. So there’s the practical, needs side of things. But Karl still wants to talk to her, to learn her favourite colour and her favourite book and her favourite food and what her favourite cartoon character is- and if she doesn’t have one, she’s bound to soon. This is his daughter. His _daughter._ He wants nothing more than to care for her and give her all the attention and love he has to give. 

“Hey,” Sapnap stage whispers, from the driver’s seat. “What’s on your mind?” 

Karl blinks back to reality and looks back over at his husband, who glances over at him and smiles before returning his eyes to the road. 

“You looked like you were thinking hard.” Sapnap says. Karl takes a deep breath in, holds it, lets it out. 

“Overwhelmed, I guess. Not too much though, I’m alright, I just...we have a _daughter_ now. Like, _officially._ ” Karl says, voice as quiet as Sapnap’s. Sapnap lets a small smile grow on his face. 

“Yeah,” he responds softly, “We do.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karl learns some of Ruby's favourites

Ruby settles in easily to the house, with her little room nestled at the end of the hallway, in between their offices and their bedroom, so they’re never too far away. The room itself is starting to fill up with more personal belongings- a Doc McStuffins blanket, a barbie playset, a plushie of Waddles from Gravity Falls. 

Slowly, over the next couple of months, Karl starts getting answers to the questions he’d been thinking up on that first car ride home. _Favourite colour? Favourite food? Favourite book? Favourite cartoon character?_

He learns her favourite food first. 

~

“I’m home!” Karl calls, walking in the side door and hanging his car keys up on the hook. Almost immediately, he can hear the pattering of little footsteps, and a small grin makes its way onto his face as Ruby comes running around the corner and into his arms. He picks her up onto his hip with a small ‘oof’ and a sloppy kiss to her forehead, and she giggles and says “Dada noo!” 

“Yep, love you too, Ruby rutabaga.” He says, making her giggle again. He walks further into the house, towards the downstairs guest-room-turned-office that he knows Sapnap is in, door open with a perfect view of the living room. “How’s editing going?” He calls as he approaches, finding Sapnap already looking up, headphones around his neck and black hair swept up in a bun, clearly waiting for Karl’s arrival. 

“Pretty good. Should be able to get this video out by tomorrow, day after at the latest.” Sapnap answers, standing up and placing the headphones on his chair. “How was recording?” He asks, walking over to give Karl a kiss. Karl accepts the kiss gladly, and the hand on his waist that comes along with it. 

“It was good, it was good.” Karl responds. “Nothing too out of the ordinary. Jimmy did say he had plans for another long-term video, though. Not sure if it’s a 24-hours or a last to leave or what, but we can plan for it, we’ll have time. Pretty sure Chris has tips for that anyways,” He jokes. Sapnap just smiles and kisses him again. 

“You got any ideas for dinner? Neither me nor Ruby have eaten since lunch,” Sapnap says, moving away from Karl and towards the kitchen. 

“Not sure. We need to go shopping again soon, though, fridge is starting to get empty,” Karl says, following behind him. “What about you, Ruta? Got any ideas for dinner? Do you have a favourite food?” He asks, turning towards Ruby. She perks up and looks up at the ceiling, seemingly deep in thought. 

“Mac’roni and cheese!” She exclaims, and Karl laughs. “That sounds perfect, sweetie. Sap, we still have a box left?” There’s the sound of the pantry door opening, and then Sapnap calls back a “Yeah. Pretty sure we have some frozen peas that we could mix in as well.” 

“That settles it, then,” Karl says, placing Ruby in her seat at the table. “Macaroni and cheese and peas.” 

Ruby just smiles up at him. 

~

“Hey, Ruta, you up here?” Karl calls, as he walks up the stairs. She hadn’t been in the living room, and nothing downstairs had looked immediately wrong, so she was probably in her room. She’d _better_ be in her room, otherwise he was probably going to go into a slight panic.

“Ruta? Ruby rutabaga?” He asks, walking down the hall, and he’s greeted with the sight of her sitting on the floor playing with her barbies. “Hey, sweetie.” 

“Hi dada!” She says, not looking up from her toys. 

“What’cha doing in here?” He asks, sitting down on the carpet next to her. “Having a fun adventure with your barbies?” She just nods, and continues mumbling voices and lines quietly, her play unbothered by her dad. 

Karl sits back, taking in a slow, deep breath and letting it out equally as slow, looking around his daughter’s room. It’s still fairly bare, lots of plain, unpatterned cloth and not many clear personal belongings. 

Karl’s struck with a thought. It’s still only the morning, they have nothing scheduled, and he has nothing better to do. 

“Hey, Ruta,” He asks, and her little head turns to look at him. “You want to go shopping?” 

This is how they end up driving to Target at 11 am on a Saturday morning, with Karl navigating and Ruby bouncing her head to the music Karl’s put on. It’s an odd mix of High School Musical and cartoon songs, and a few Ruby had heard on the radio and Karl had figured were kid appropriate enough. He certainly wouldn’t be making his toddler listen to 100 gecs, or Sweater Weather, or some of the more...adult songs he’d listened to back during the DreamSMP days. Although Ruby’s probably too young to understand the lyrics anyways. 

“We’re here, Ruby rutabaga!” Karl calls, parking the car and stepping out to unbuckle Ruby. She cheers and reaches her arms up so he can take her out of the carseat, and they’re on their way into Target in no time. Karl grabs one of the carts with a kid seat attatched, and Ruby giggles as he lifts her up, places her into it, and boops her gently on the nose. 

“Alright, Ruta, do you know why we’re here?” Karl asks, beginning to walk slowly into the store. Ruby shakes her head, looking up at her dad. “We’re here for _you._ You can pick out decorations for your room, toys, clothes, whatever- not too much, of course, but your room is looking a little bare, and I decided we should fix that.” He declares. Ruby is smiling wide and she raises her hands up towards Karl. He leans down to meet her hands and she grabs his face tightly, cheerfully declaring “I love you dada!” and Karl’s heart just about melts on the spot. “I love you too, Ruby Rutabaga. Now let’s go spend Papa’s money!” 

They slowly make their way through the aisles, adding things to the cart here and there- a yellow sweatshirt embroidered with bees, a pair of yellow duck rainboots, a blue puffy dress that, when Ruby sees it, turns to Karl with the biggest pair of puppydog eyes. He puts it in the cart almost immediately. There’s a new barbie doll and a stuffie of a dinosaur from Doc McStuffins. There’s a thick peach and yellow blanket that Ruby keeps running her hands over, and a set of crayons and a colouring book.

They stop in the grocery aisle momentarily, and Karl parks the cart in front of the boxed macaroni. “What do you think, Ruta, the red pet patrol one or the yellow guppies one?” Ruby is quick to proclaim “Yellow! It tastes better,” despite the two being the exact same macaroni, and Karl grabs a few boxes and adds them to the cart. 

“You sure like your yellow, huh Ruta?” Karl remarks as they head towards the checkout, and Ruby nods, her small ponytail bouncing. “Yellow’s my favourite,” she says very seriously. Karl hums, and mentally notes that in the back of his mind. 

They check out, and Karl doesn’t pay too much mind to the price, and decides that they still have time to get food from somewhere before they head back home for Ruby’s nap. 

“Where do you wanna go?” Karl asks, as he’s strapping Ruby back into her carseat. “Subway?” She asks, and Karl places a hand on his chest, gasping theatrically. “Oh, how could you? You’re just like your papa,” He exclaims, and Ruby giggles. “Dada’s yucky!” She proclaims, and Karl raises his eyebrows. “Dada’s _yucky?_ ” He asks, just as dramatic as before, and Ruby just giggles harder. 

Regardless, Karl drives them to the nearest Subway, and as they sit there, Ruby chowing down on her kid’s sandwich with her new yellow bee sweatshirt on, he can’t help but grin and feel happy. 

~

Karl’s editing a new Mr. Beast gaming video when he hears the cry from Ruby’s room. 

“DAAAAD!”

He immediately drops his headphones onto his desk and gets up from his chair, pushing opn the half-closed door to his office and taking long strides the few feet down the hall to Ruby’s room. 

“Hey, hey, Ruby, is everything okay?” He asks, rushing down to where she’s sitting on the floor. Tears are pouring out of her eyes and her nose is running, and she looks up with a trembling lip and says “I b-b-broke Bunnie!” before breaking into another round of tears. As Karl pulls her into his arms, head resting against his shoulder, he can see her beloved animal crossing plushie on the floor next to them, the arm ripped completely off from the body, some cotton fluff falling onto the ground. 

“Oh, no, sweetie, I’m so sorry!” Karl says. “Hey, hey, shh, shh, it’s okay. We can fix Bunnie right up, okay? Me and papa both know how to sew, and we can have her good as new just in time for bedtime.” Karl reassures her, petting her hair softly. She just keeps on crying, although there’s a small nod when he talks about sewing Bunnie up, so he knows she’s not completely inconsolable. 

She keeps her face buried in her dad’s shoulder and he keeps on holding her close and rubbing her back, and soon all of her tears are dried up and she’s just sitting there sniffling. 

“Hey, how about we go downstairs, and you can get your waterbottle, and I can ask papa where the sewing kit is. Does that sound good?” Karl gently prompts, and Ruby nods against his shoulder. His sweatshirt is soaked through with tears and probably snot too, but taking care of Ruby is his top priority right now. “Alright. Up we go, Ruby Rutabaga,” he says as he shifts her in his arms and stands up. She doesn’t move her head from its spot on his shoulder as they head downstairs, and Sapnap pokes his head out of his office when he hears them walk through the living room. 

“Everything alright?” He asks, and Karl nods. 

“Bunnie’s arm got torn, do you think you could find the sewing kit?” Karl asks. Sapnap frowns sympathetically, and he nods. “Yeah, pretty sure I know where it is. We’ll get Bunnie fixed up in no time, okay Rubes?” He places a hand on her head and she just nods. The hand leaves and two quick kisses are given- one on Ruby’s head and one on Karl’s lips, before Sapnap heads off in search of the sewing kit. 

“Alrighty, let’s get that waterbottle of yours filled up,” Karl says. “Will you be okay if I set you down?” Ruby’s response is to hold him tighter, and he nods slowly and says “Alright. That’s okay. I’m not leavin’.” 

It’s a bit tricky getting the waterbottle filled up and the top screwed on with only one free hand, but Karl manages it, and Ruby starts drinking it down as soon as he hands it to her. “Don’t chug,” he reminds her. “You don’t want a bellyache.” 

He moves the two of them over to the couch, and Ruby slowly drinks her waterbottle as she sits on Karl’s lap, curled up to his chest. Honestly, Karl thinks, it’s pretty nice to be able to just sit down and relax and cuddle with his daughter. Their lives were decently hectic- it wasn’t often they got a chance to relax without setting time aside to do so. 

(Even if he is technically putting off editing to do this. It’s fine- Ruby was _crying._ There’s no way he wasn’t going to drop everything.) 

He’s brought back to reality when Sapnap walks back into the room, sewing kit in one hand and Bunnie in the other. 

“I saved the editing on your computer and shut it down, by the way. Didn’t think you would want to keep working for the rest of the day.” Sapnap says, walking over and giving Karl another kiss before sitting in the easy chair next to the couch. 

It’s as if his husband read his mind, honestly, and he smiles softly. Quietly, so as not to disturb a tired-out Ruby, he looks over at Sapnap and says “I love you.” Sapnap meets his gaze with an equal grin, and says “I love you too.” 

They sit there, in mostly silence, as Karl cuddles Ruby and Sapnap slowly fixes up Bunnie. Like Karl had said earlier, it’s nice to be able to relax. They decide to order pizza for dinner, and by the time they’re done eating, Bunnie is all fixed up and back in one piece. Karl puts away the sewing kit while Sapnap presents the fixed stuffie to Ruby, who gasps excitedly and leaps into Sapnap’s arms, saying “Thanks papa!” as she grabs the stuffie. 

“Of course, Rubes.” Sapnap responds, hugging her back. “I’m just glad Bunnie’s okay in time for bedtime.” Ruby just nods, too focused on petting the soft ear of her toy, and Sapnap picks her up and carries her upstairs for her bath. 

Later, as Karl’s tucking her in and Sapnap’s putting her book back on the shelf, she hugs Bunnie tightly and mumbles “M’ glad you’re good at fixin’, cause Bunnie’s my fav-a-rite.” Karl looks down at her softly and says “Oh yeah?” 

Ruby just nods, eyes already closed and slipping into sleep. “G’night dada n’ papa.” 

“Goodnight, Rubes.” 

“Goodnight, Ruby Rutabaga.” 

~

Sapnap’s the one who usually reads her a bedtime story. Either one of them will help with the bath, and pajamas, and brushing teeth, but Sapnap’s always the one to read the bedtime story. Honestly, Karl isn’t sure he’d be able to properly do the story if he tried, since Ruby is so used to Sapnap doing it. 

But it’s just his luck that Sapnap is down in Florida visiting Dream and George for the long weekend, and it’s now bedtime and Karl’s only just realized that he has to do the story. It doesn’t even occur to him that he could call Sapnap- even if he’s in the middle of something, he’d drop it instantly for his daughter. 

None of that comes to Karl’s mind as he’s standing in the bathroom, staring blankly at the wall. Ruby’s towel is hung up to dry and the tub is drained- there’s no need for him to still be in here. 

“Dada?” Ruby calls, from her room, and he snaps out of it and takes a deep breath. 

“I’m right here, sweetie,” He says, as he walks into the room. “You picked out a book yet?” Ruby nods, holding out her tattered copy of Goodnight, Moon. Karl smiles softly. “Good choice.” 

He helps her clamber into bed and get under the covers, Bunnie in her arms, and then picks up the book from where it’s at on the bedspread. He takes another deep breath that he hopes is unnoticeable, and opens the book to start reading. 

“And there were three little bears sitting on chairs

And two little kittens and a pair of mittens

And a little toyhouse and a young mouse 

And a comb and a brush and a bowl full of mush

And a quiet old lady who was whispering ‘hush’

Goodnight moon

Goodnight cow jumping over the moon

Goodnight light and the red balloon

Goodnight bears

Goodnight chairs 

Goodnight kittens

And goodnight mittens

Goodnight clocks and goodnight socks 

Goodnight little house

And goodnight mouse

Goodnight comb and goodnight brush

Goodnight nobody

Goodnight mush

And goodnight to the old lady whispering ‘hush’

Goodnight stars

Goodnight air

Goodnight noises everywhere.” 

He closes the book and looks back down to see a much sleepier Ruby, Bunnie cuddled close to her face and eyes almost shut. 

“Did I do a better job than papa?” Karl whispers, half jokeing, and Ruby shakes her head. 

“Papa’s better. Tha’s why I picked m’ favourite book, cause it’s what papa picks when I can’t decide.” 

Karl smiles, and lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. “That sounds like a good system. Goodnight, Ruby Rutabaga. I love you,” He says, leaning over to press a kiss to her head. 

“Goodnight dada. I love you too.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby has a nightmare. Sapnap's there to help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whee
> 
> expect all updates to be as fuckass random as this

Ruby, thank the heavens, usually sleeps the whole night through. It had been one of the key factors in the adoption process; choosing the age range. Karl and Sapnap, having both had horrendous sleep schedules in their earlier 20s, were now immensely glad they weren’t having to wake up at ungodly hours and calm a crying infant. 

That’s not to say that she never wakes up during the night. Sometimes she needs a drink of water, rarely, she’s sick, and sometimes she just needs more cuddles with one of her dads. Whenever she calls out for cuddles her voice will be sleepy and just a little whiny, and one of them will crawl out of bed and pad down the hall to her room. 

Tonight, though, when her voice crackles through the baby monitor, it sounds much more panicked, which is why Sapnap practically throws off the covers and takes long strides down the hall. He opens her door slowly, so as to not scare her more, and his heart wrenches when he sees her sitting up, tears rolling down her face and hugging Bunnie like her life depends on it. 

“P-papa?” She sniffles, and Sapnap’s immediately at her bedside. 

“I’m right here, rubberducky. I’ve gotcha, you’re okay. Let it out, you’re alright.” Sapnap whispers, scooping her into a hug and holding her close, feeling her tears soak his shoulder. With a small ‘oof,’ he picks her up and turns on the bedside lamp, so that the dark corners of the room are illuminated. 

“Are you okay, Rubes?” He asks, rocking her back and forth slightly. She shakes her head, face still buried in his shoulder. “Oh, sweetie, what’s wrong?” 

“Th-th-there’s a m-m-m-monster in the closet! It’s gonna-gonna get me!” She cries, and he holds her tighter as she bursts into a new round of sobs. 

“Oh, sweetie, did you have a nightmare?” Sapnap whispers sympathetically. She nods, and he presses a kiss to the top of her head. “It’s okay, sweetie, it wasn’t real. It was all in your head, okay? You’re safe, I promise.” 

She lifts her head slowly, looking over at the closet door, and her grip on his shirt gets tighter. 

“It’s okay, sweetie. I’m here to protect you, and so is dada. Do you want me to look in the closet for you?” He asks, shifting his grip slightly. She sniffles and leans her head into his chest again, but she nods. “Alright.” 

With Ruby still in his arms, he walks over to the closet and slowly opens the door. Of course, it’s entirely ordinary inside, clothes hung up and shoes on their little rack. 

“Nothing’s there besides clothes, rubberduck. You’re safe.” He reassures her, and she just nods again, still leaning against his chest. Sapnap closes the closet door and then shifts his grip again so that he’s hugging her close to his chest, swaying back and forth slightly. 

“You want to sleep in me and dada’s room tonight, sweetie?” He asks, and she nods. 

“But m’ not sleepy again,” she says, and Sapnap hums. 

“That’s okay. Nightmares can be scary, and they can keep you awake.” 

After a pause, Ruby still being held close to his chest, Sapnap gets an idea. 

“Would you like some warm milk?” 

Ruby’s nose scrunches up slightly, and she looks up at him questioningly. 

“Dun’t warm milk mean it’s yucky?” She asks, and Sapnap smiles. 

“If you leave milk out on the counter and it becomes warm, then yes. If you take some and heat it up on the stove and add things to it, then no. We’re doing the ‘stove and adding things’ kind of warm milk.” He answers. “Does that sound any good to you? It’ll make you sleepy,” He adds. Ruby seems to consider it for a moment, and then nods. 

Sapnap turns and heads out of the room and down the stairs, Ruby still in his arms and Bunnie still in hers. He turns on lights as they go, so that no spot is left too dark and scary; when they reach the kitchen he tries to set her down on her stool, but she starts whining and clings to his shirt. “Alright, alright. You can stay with me, Rubes, it’s alright,” he soothes, as he opens the fridge for the jug of milk. 

He goes about the process of making the milk, grabbing Ruby’s cup from the cupboard and setting a saucepan on the stove, measuring out the milk and, while it heats up, holding Ruby close again as he absentmindedly hums a song. 

The milk reaches the right temperature, and he carefully pours it into the cup and adds the honey. He pours a little bit for himself, and adds some cinnamon in addition. 

“Here you go, sweetie. Drink it carefully, okay? It’s hot.” He warns her, and she nods before taking a careful drink. “Is it good?”

Ruby looks up at the ceiling, looks down, takes another drink, and then looks back at Sapnap and grins. He grins back and takes his own mug, taking both of them into the living room. He sits down on the couch and settles Ruby on his lap, still close to him but free enough to take sips of her drink. They drink together slowly, letting the milk warm them as they cuddle. 

“Papa?” Ruby asks quietly, her voice heavy with sleep. 

“Yeah, Rubes?” He responds, pulling his mug away from his lips. 

“You wouldn’t ever send me back, would you?” 

As soon as the words leave her lips, a rush of cold goes through Sapnap’s veins. He carefully sets his mug down on a side table, and pulls her close, into a tight hug. 

“Never ever, Ruby. Never in a million years would I send you back. Not if someone paid me to. You’re my little rubberducky, my Rubes, my sunshine. I love you so much, sweetie, okay? And so does your dad. We are so glad to have you here, every single day. I love you so much, Ruby.” He says, the words spilling out with as much sincerity as he can fit into them. 

He hears nothing, and then a quiet sniffle. 

“Shh, it’s okay, Rubes. Let it out, I’m right here.” He says, soothingly, rubbing a hand up and down her back. “I’m right here.” 

Later, when all of her tears are cried out and her head is nodding, Sapnap carefully picks her up, trying not to jostle her as he places their mugs in the kitchen sink, turns off all of the lights, and heads back upstairs. He opens the door to his and Karl’s room, gently placing a mostly-asleep Ruby onto the bed, who immediately cuddles up to Karl. Sapnap goes to shut the door, and then crawls into bed, pulling the covers up over the three of them, Ruby in the middle. 

“Goodnight, rubberducky. I love you, and I’m- I’m so, so grateful I get to be your dad.” Sapnap whispers, choking up slightly at the end. He presses a kiss to her head and then relaxes fully into the bed, letting himself be carried into sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is officially just. Non linear and basically just karlnap oneshots but they have a daughter   
> :]

**Author's Note:**

> different from weed but still karlnap babey B)
> 
> discord.gg/CJg6M2j hehe
> 
> Also I still check my indirects hehe my twt is colourspaz, if you tweet about it and want me to see it either tag me or use the phrase ‘karlnap baby fic’ ❤️


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